So the eight-year-old, having read her Scooby Doo and Marvel Adventures Avengers books, asked me specifically where Captain America was. She reads it every month. Well, looks at it, I'm pretty sure she skims.
The twelve-year-old can't stand it, says it's "too dark" (she means visually, dark colors), although she did read #25.
At least one of my daughters has taste... :)
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Snowball effect.
So in my Big Box of Comics this month, I got both Captain America #26 and the Civil War Captain America trade, which includes the Winter Soldier: Winter Kills one-shot along with issues 22-24 of Captain America.
Maybe it's just me, but isn't it sort of weird to have the trade running only two issues behind the comic?
(I know, delays. Still weird.)
Maybe it's just me, but isn't it sort of weird to have the trade running only two issues behind the comic?
(I know, delays. Still weird.)
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
What women want in superhero comics
I'm chiming in on this, just for fun. Obviously most women don't want anything in comics because they don't read them, aren't interested in reading them, and are an entirely unattainable market. This is also true of most men. So comics aren't going to do well by trying to figure out what a mainstream audience--male or female--likes, because that audience isn't going to be interested in comics anyway.
But the women who already like comics? Or who are fringe enough to maybe be interested in them, or at least not opposed to the notion of being interested in them? Didn't someone say that Marvel or DC estimates that 10% of their current readership is already female? You know, 10% may be a small number, but it isn't that small. It's statistically significant.
But I'm not going to talk about what even that comic-friendly subgroup of women want in comics, because it's still too broad a topic. I'm going to be more specific. Specific as in talking about myself. :)
Demographically, I'm not a typical reader, age and gender-wise. But in terms of my comic choices, I'm pretty mainstream--I like superhero books, Marvel in particular but have added some DC to my list over the last year or two. I have no idea whether my own reasons for reading comics are anything like other folks' reasons--nostalgia plays a part in it, in the sense that I tend to follow books and characters I've read for years, to read what I have always read, although I certainly add to that pool of material. I also like the basic superhero concept, the flying and the invisibility and the repeated blows to the head that miraculously do not result in serious head injury.
Women comic fans already like comics. I already like comics. I am already predisposed to like comics. When I pick up a comic, I expect to enjoy it, in the sense that I have a positive view of comics and the idea always in the back of my head that they are fun. That much of the work has already been done, in my case by way of years and years of superhero comic reading.
So, what I want in comics?
Interesting characters. It helps if they're characters I "know" but it's not essential; I will however give more leeway to a book featuring a character I like, or a book I've read for a good long time. Just like I'll take more crap from a friend of long standing than I will someone I've met only recently. In either case there'll come a point when enough is enough, but that point is further away for the familiar. I don't really have brand loyalty in the sense of "I read Marvel" but it does happen that most of the books and characters I have a history with are Marvel properties, which I suppose works out to about the same result. So, yes, Marvel has to work less hard for my money than DC does, but they do have to work. So, both good new characters, and further development of characters I already enjoy.
Good character interaction. This is probably the reason I have always favored team books. Or books with a strong supporting cast for the main character (Captain America right now, and Iron Man has been that way in the past--remember Mrs. Arbogast?--but I do like Sal Kennedy from the current title). The way the characters relate to each other is important.
Art that doesn't interfere with the story. Although I have a greater appreciation for the art now than I did as a kid, I still think of the words as more important. But good comic art does more than just illustrate the words; good art adds to the meaning within the story as well. Although I like it when it's pretty, I can tolerate average art--it's just not the main selling point for me. What I can't tolerate is art that confuses the narrative.
Decent plots. Okay, I've been reading comics for years, and I understand that when a story lasts for many months, you might end up with a few plot holes. I can live with that as long as the holes are relatively small. But I do appreciate a nice tight plot. It's one of the reasons Captain America is my favorite title (and the main reason I buy both the floppies and the trades--the floppies because I seriously can't wait that long for a fix, and the trades because I know I'll be looking back to previous issues to see how everything fits together).
Comfort reading. This is where the nostalgia factor comes in, and it's one of the reasons I tend to like what I know. It isn't that I don't want to be challenged by what I read, it's just that that is secondary to this. One of the reasons I read comics is to de-stress. They relax me. (Even more than Nero Wolfe mysteries, and that's saying something.) Because it's not an either-or thing, you can have both in the same book. Please note that this does not mean that nothing must change in my favorite books. Civil War (apart from the delays) was just fine with me in this sense, because it featured a lot of my favorite characters. And while I may joke about Tony Stark's current jerkiness, I still like the guy and find him interesting and complex and (unfortunately for him) not entirely out of character.
Now, I do like it when there are women in my comics, but I don't think I buy based on gender particularly. I do buy Birds of Prey and Ms. Marvel and She-Hulk and Wonder Woman (at least I'll start getting it again in a few months). I don't buy Heroes for Hire or Manhunter or Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane. I was vaguely annoyed with Spider-Woman being the only female character in New Avengers, but that may well have been because of how she related to the men (the pheromone thing).
Some of what I read and why:
All-New Atom: Just a joyous, fun-filled comic book, the closest thing out there to the comics I loved as a kid. A fun character with a good supporting cast.
Birds of Prey: Good characterization and character interaction, plots that keep me coming back. I have not, however, "bonded" with the characters overall, and I'm not sure why.
Captain America: All-around excellence--story, plot, dialogue, characterization, and art. Besides, Sharon Carter, Nick Fury, Winter Soldier, and Falcon! Every month, most anticipated and first read.
Green Lantern Corps: Soranik Natu. That's pretty much it, and that's nothing against the rest of the cast, just that she is so outstanding. Possibly not a keeper in the long run.
Irredeemable Ant-Man: Totally unlike anything else on the stands (okay, so I don't actually get my comics off of stands, I get them in the mail) right now. He's the superhero that all too many of the guys I've known would have turned into. You just can't stop reading to see how low this guy will go.
Mighty Avengers: Well, for one thing I seem to get anything with "Avengers" in the title, at least for a try-out. :) I don't know how well I'll like this book, but it's strong enough on the characterization to hold me while this initial storyline (which I don't find enthralling--don't hate it but don't love it--so far) runs its course.
Moon Knight: For some reason I'm finding this book really compelling. I haven't read the old Moon Knight title, so I don't know his history as much as might be useful here, but this book holds my interest, in part because he is about the creepiest protagonist going.
Ms. Marvel: At this point Carol is riding on nostalgia equity (I haven't been disliking the book but I've sure been disliking the character), but I expect that to change now that Civil War is over.
New Avengers: I like the characters and want to see what happens to them. Plus they've got Hawkeye now, right? Always liked Hawkeye.
She-Hulk: I love the character and have ever since her Avengers days. Humor, good dialogue and characterization, and a wonderful supporting cast.
The Spirit: I'll admit that I picked this one up initially because of my fondness for the original Spirit, but it's held up surprisingly well. It's not the old Spirit, but it's something that seems to stand on its own. That said, it's not on the keep-at-all-costs list.
But the women who already like comics? Or who are fringe enough to maybe be interested in them, or at least not opposed to the notion of being interested in them? Didn't someone say that Marvel or DC estimates that 10% of their current readership is already female? You know, 10% may be a small number, but it isn't that small. It's statistically significant.
But I'm not going to talk about what even that comic-friendly subgroup of women want in comics, because it's still too broad a topic. I'm going to be more specific. Specific as in talking about myself. :)
Demographically, I'm not a typical reader, age and gender-wise. But in terms of my comic choices, I'm pretty mainstream--I like superhero books, Marvel in particular but have added some DC to my list over the last year or two. I have no idea whether my own reasons for reading comics are anything like other folks' reasons--nostalgia plays a part in it, in the sense that I tend to follow books and characters I've read for years, to read what I have always read, although I certainly add to that pool of material. I also like the basic superhero concept, the flying and the invisibility and the repeated blows to the head that miraculously do not result in serious head injury.
Women comic fans already like comics. I already like comics. I am already predisposed to like comics. When I pick up a comic, I expect to enjoy it, in the sense that I have a positive view of comics and the idea always in the back of my head that they are fun. That much of the work has already been done, in my case by way of years and years of superhero comic reading.
So, what I want in comics?
Interesting characters. It helps if they're characters I "know" but it's not essential; I will however give more leeway to a book featuring a character I like, or a book I've read for a good long time. Just like I'll take more crap from a friend of long standing than I will someone I've met only recently. In either case there'll come a point when enough is enough, but that point is further away for the familiar. I don't really have brand loyalty in the sense of "I read Marvel" but it does happen that most of the books and characters I have a history with are Marvel properties, which I suppose works out to about the same result. So, yes, Marvel has to work less hard for my money than DC does, but they do have to work. So, both good new characters, and further development of characters I already enjoy.
Good character interaction. This is probably the reason I have always favored team books. Or books with a strong supporting cast for the main character (Captain America right now, and Iron Man has been that way in the past--remember Mrs. Arbogast?--but I do like Sal Kennedy from the current title). The way the characters relate to each other is important.
Art that doesn't interfere with the story. Although I have a greater appreciation for the art now than I did as a kid, I still think of the words as more important. But good comic art does more than just illustrate the words; good art adds to the meaning within the story as well. Although I like it when it's pretty, I can tolerate average art--it's just not the main selling point for me. What I can't tolerate is art that confuses the narrative.
Decent plots. Okay, I've been reading comics for years, and I understand that when a story lasts for many months, you might end up with a few plot holes. I can live with that as long as the holes are relatively small. But I do appreciate a nice tight plot. It's one of the reasons Captain America is my favorite title (and the main reason I buy both the floppies and the trades--the floppies because I seriously can't wait that long for a fix, and the trades because I know I'll be looking back to previous issues to see how everything fits together).
Comfort reading. This is where the nostalgia factor comes in, and it's one of the reasons I tend to like what I know. It isn't that I don't want to be challenged by what I read, it's just that that is secondary to this. One of the reasons I read comics is to de-stress. They relax me. (Even more than Nero Wolfe mysteries, and that's saying something.) Because it's not an either-or thing, you can have both in the same book. Please note that this does not mean that nothing must change in my favorite books. Civil War (apart from the delays) was just fine with me in this sense, because it featured a lot of my favorite characters. And while I may joke about Tony Stark's current jerkiness, I still like the guy and find him interesting and complex and (unfortunately for him) not entirely out of character.
Now, I do like it when there are women in my comics, but I don't think I buy based on gender particularly. I do buy Birds of Prey and Ms. Marvel and She-Hulk and Wonder Woman (at least I'll start getting it again in a few months). I don't buy Heroes for Hire or Manhunter or Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane. I was vaguely annoyed with Spider-Woman being the only female character in New Avengers, but that may well have been because of how she related to the men (the pheromone thing).
Some of what I read and why:
All-New Atom: Just a joyous, fun-filled comic book, the closest thing out there to the comics I loved as a kid. A fun character with a good supporting cast.
Birds of Prey: Good characterization and character interaction, plots that keep me coming back. I have not, however, "bonded" with the characters overall, and I'm not sure why.
Captain America: All-around excellence--story, plot, dialogue, characterization, and art. Besides, Sharon Carter, Nick Fury, Winter Soldier, and Falcon! Every month, most anticipated and first read.
Green Lantern Corps: Soranik Natu. That's pretty much it, and that's nothing against the rest of the cast, just that she is so outstanding. Possibly not a keeper in the long run.
Irredeemable Ant-Man: Totally unlike anything else on the stands (okay, so I don't actually get my comics off of stands, I get them in the mail) right now. He's the superhero that all too many of the guys I've known would have turned into. You just can't stop reading to see how low this guy will go.
Mighty Avengers: Well, for one thing I seem to get anything with "Avengers" in the title, at least for a try-out. :) I don't know how well I'll like this book, but it's strong enough on the characterization to hold me while this initial storyline (which I don't find enthralling--don't hate it but don't love it--so far) runs its course.
Moon Knight: For some reason I'm finding this book really compelling. I haven't read the old Moon Knight title, so I don't know his history as much as might be useful here, but this book holds my interest, in part because he is about the creepiest protagonist going.
Ms. Marvel: At this point Carol is riding on nostalgia equity (I haven't been disliking the book but I've sure been disliking the character), but I expect that to change now that Civil War is over.
New Avengers: I like the characters and want to see what happens to them. Plus they've got Hawkeye now, right? Always liked Hawkeye.
She-Hulk: I love the character and have ever since her Avengers days. Humor, good dialogue and characterization, and a wonderful supporting cast.
The Spirit: I'll admit that I picked this one up initially because of my fondness for the original Spirit, but it's held up surprisingly well. It's not the old Spirit, but it's something that seems to stand on its own. That said, it's not on the keep-at-all-costs list.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Belated anniversary.
Okay, I totally missed this, but as of May 14 I've been writing Brainfreeze: Comic Love for a year.
Granted that that would be more impressive if I wrote more than 10-15 times a month. Hey, sometimes I do better. (Would if I got my comics on a weekly basis, anyway, grrrr.)
(Don't feel bad, I also forgot about my wedding anniversary this year until a friend mentioned it. Guess I'm just not all that sentimental. :))
Granted that that would be more impressive if I wrote more than 10-15 times a month. Hey, sometimes I do better. (Would if I got my comics on a weekly basis, anyway, grrrr.)
(Don't feel bad, I also forgot about my wedding anniversary this year until a friend mentioned it. Guess I'm just not all that sentimental. :))
Thoughts on various topics.
My comics should be here in a few days, I hope. So before they arrive and I undoubtedly want to spend my writing energy talking about them, I'll talk about a few of the things I've seen mention of online lately.
The Mary Jane statue.
Doesn't bother me particularly (i.e. I wouldn't have thought to be offended if I hadn't read on the internet that I might want to be), apart from the fact that that little thing is supposed to be a laundry basket. Even back when I was single and washing for one, I used a full-sized laundry basket. MJ would have to do her wash on a daily basis if she uses a basket that size. That's my way of saying that, really, it does look like she's doing her fine hand washables in a bucket. I always used to use the sink, but whatever. (That was in the days when I owned fine hand washables. With motherhood came a preference for items I can throw in the machine without thinking too much about it.) And it's not beyond the realm of possibility that Spidey's costume requires hand washing, although I'd doubt it given that Peter was single for so much of his spidering career and I don't really see him spending half an hour a night up to his elbows in Woolite. Anyway, apparently the scene really isn't self-explanatory enough for it to be clear what's being shown, and that makes it an odd choice for a statue in any case.
Tentacle porn.
Specifically, I don't read Heroes for Hire, and have never read manga, so this notion really would have been off my radar. More generally, I'm all for porn of most sorts, but have to admit that tentacles seem particularly un-erotic to me--still, each to their own, right?
Gail Simone taking over Wonder Woman.
Guess I'll be adding WW back to the get list in a few months! The twelve-year-old will be pleased.
Iron Man is a jerk.
I'm pretty sure that you could (if you wanted to) blame Extremis for this, because he started with the big dickishness after that all happened. Still, what's everyone else's excuse?
Girls being encouraged (or not) to read comics.
I don't think that kids in general are encouraged to read comics. That said, some of what I read here irritated the heck out of me. All I can say is that forty years ago, presumably a time when toys and media were more gender-specific than they are now, my folks bought me superhero comics on a reasonably regular basis. What the hell happened?
The Mary Jane statue.
Doesn't bother me particularly (i.e. I wouldn't have thought to be offended if I hadn't read on the internet that I might want to be), apart from the fact that that little thing is supposed to be a laundry basket. Even back when I was single and washing for one, I used a full-sized laundry basket. MJ would have to do her wash on a daily basis if she uses a basket that size. That's my way of saying that, really, it does look like she's doing her fine hand washables in a bucket. I always used to use the sink, but whatever. (That was in the days when I owned fine hand washables. With motherhood came a preference for items I can throw in the machine without thinking too much about it.) And it's not beyond the realm of possibility that Spidey's costume requires hand washing, although I'd doubt it given that Peter was single for so much of his spidering career and I don't really see him spending half an hour a night up to his elbows in Woolite. Anyway, apparently the scene really isn't self-explanatory enough for it to be clear what's being shown, and that makes it an odd choice for a statue in any case.
Tentacle porn.
Specifically, I don't read Heroes for Hire, and have never read manga, so this notion really would have been off my radar. More generally, I'm all for porn of most sorts, but have to admit that tentacles seem particularly un-erotic to me--still, each to their own, right?
Gail Simone taking over Wonder Woman.
Guess I'll be adding WW back to the get list in a few months! The twelve-year-old will be pleased.
Iron Man is a jerk.
I'm pretty sure that you could (if you wanted to) blame Extremis for this, because he started with the big dickishness after that all happened. Still, what's everyone else's excuse?
Girls being encouraged (or not) to read comics.
I don't think that kids in general are encouraged to read comics. That said, some of what I read here irritated the heck out of me. All I can say is that forty years ago, presumably a time when toys and media were more gender-specific than they are now, my folks bought me superhero comics on a reasonably regular basis. What the hell happened?
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
50 Things I Love About Mainstream Superhero Comics
In no particular order.
1. Thought balloons. I didn't realize how much I'd missed these until recent Mighty Avengers issues reminded me. Not that I think they should return across the board, but there's no real equivalent in most current comics.
2. The way that most of the Marvel Universe, particularly its NYC, is so calm about superhero antics. Guy throws a Fiat across the street? Seen it. It's like the weather to them.
3. The old Defenders, the group with Nighthawk and Valkyrie and Hellcat. Never cared much if Doc Strange was in the story, it was the B and C-listers who really made the book.
4. Giant Turtle Olsen.
5. The old Legion of Superheroes, including the soap opera aspects. Saturn Girl in a pink bikini and heels, and still the toughest Legionnaire of them all. The old insecure Brainiac Five. Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel. The Substitute Legion.
6. The old Legion of Superheroes' clubhouse, the one that looked like an upside-down rocketship.
7. Ed Brubaker's Captain America. First book I read every month it comes out.
8. Sharon Carter, who kicks so much ass. Her recent storylines have been tremendous.
9. That Defenders story where Chondu the Mystic ended up with a unicorn's horn, wings, chicken legs and lampreys for arms. Thrilled, he was not. That was mumblemumble years ago and the image is still stuck firmly in my brain.
10. Namor, the Submariner, who is always, always more fun than just about anyone else I can think of. (And how he manages to be so much cooler than Aquaman, who really ought to be pretty much the same guy, I've never been able to figure out.)
11. Decompressed stories and compressed stories. Seriously, both can be really, really good or really, really bad.
12. Action figures, whee!
13. Krypto the Superdog. It's a dog, with super-powers!
14. The return of Wonder Man to the Marvel Universe, when he was awakened to life as a, um, zuvembie. (Apparently the Comics Code forbade the use of the word "zombie.")
15. Getting my monthly box of comics in the mail, reading them all in a flurry within a day, and then re-reading them at my leisure.
16. Mantis and the Swordsman.
17. The Winter Soldier. Unlike many, I never cared much about Bucky as a character, but as the Winter Soldier he's become far more interesting.
18. The new Moon Knight series.
19. Deadpool! Everybody loves Deadpool! (Everybody in my house, anyway.)
20. Cosmic Boy's old costume from the 70s. (If you click the link, he's front and center at the bottom.)
21. George Perez, the first comic artist whose art I actually noticed.
22. Trade paperbacks. They make it so much easier to catch up on books I've missed so far (JLA). In rare cases (Captain America) I buy both the floppies and the trade.
23. The Young Avengers. Do they still have a book?
24. Cat-Man of the Secret Six, and I'm not sure why.
25. Those rare, all-too-brief moments between major company-wide comic events.
26. Being able to share my comics with my kids.
27. The comic internet, particularly the community of comic bloggers.
28. Fred Hembeck.
29. Stan Lee.
30. Every damn Avengers book they've ever come out with.
31. Ms. Marvel back in the 70s. I still like her, but when she first appeared she was something special.
32. Spider-Woman back in the 70s. Even then a non-traditional superheroine.
33. The Huntress in all her incarnations; she was amazing to watch, and had several of the best costume designs I've seen.
34. Character-driven stories. Someone had a blog post not long ago addressing character vs. plot in comics. Preferably you get both, but I'll drop a book faster for plot with no character than I will for character with no plot.
35. The original Invaders series.
36. Hawkeye (Clint Barton), who could never maintain a series of his own but was nonetheless the heart of the old Avengers for many years.
37. My few-and-far-between visits to a real comic book shop.
38. The Irredeemable Ant-Man. Second on my list of books to read every month it appears.
39. The original Damage Control mini-series, and the concept of there being a company in the business of picking up the pieces after a superhero battle.
40. The Spirit. Which I can now include in a list of favorite mainstream comic stuff.
41. Greer Nelson as The Cat, and in her early Tigra days. (Haven't been a big fan in recent years, but back in the day she was pretty great.)
42. The Vision and the Scarlet Witch. No, I don't want them back as they were, but at the time they were the best couple in comics.
43. The roller skates on Iron Man's old armor.
44. The relationship between the Beast and Wonder Man in the old Avengers book.
45. Red kryptonite.
46. Plastic Man in the JLA.
47. Nick Fury.
48. The Fantasti-Car.
49. Green Lantern rings.
50. Dr. Doom. Best villain ever, period.
1. Thought balloons. I didn't realize how much I'd missed these until recent Mighty Avengers issues reminded me. Not that I think they should return across the board, but there's no real equivalent in most current comics.
2. The way that most of the Marvel Universe, particularly its NYC, is so calm about superhero antics. Guy throws a Fiat across the street? Seen it. It's like the weather to them.
3. The old Defenders, the group with Nighthawk and Valkyrie and Hellcat. Never cared much if Doc Strange was in the story, it was the B and C-listers who really made the book.
4. Giant Turtle Olsen.
5. The old Legion of Superheroes, including the soap opera aspects. Saturn Girl in a pink bikini and heels, and still the toughest Legionnaire of them all. The old insecure Brainiac Five. Bouncing Boy and Duo Damsel. The Substitute Legion.
6. The old Legion of Superheroes' clubhouse, the one that looked like an upside-down rocketship.
7. Ed Brubaker's Captain America. First book I read every month it comes out.
8. Sharon Carter, who kicks so much ass. Her recent storylines have been tremendous.
9. That Defenders story where Chondu the Mystic ended up with a unicorn's horn, wings, chicken legs and lampreys for arms. Thrilled, he was not. That was mumblemumble years ago and the image is still stuck firmly in my brain.
10. Namor, the Submariner, who is always, always more fun than just about anyone else I can think of. (And how he manages to be so much cooler than Aquaman, who really ought to be pretty much the same guy, I've never been able to figure out.)
11. Decompressed stories and compressed stories. Seriously, both can be really, really good or really, really bad.
12. Action figures, whee!
13. Krypto the Superdog. It's a dog, with super-powers!
14. The return of Wonder Man to the Marvel Universe, when he was awakened to life as a, um, zuvembie. (Apparently the Comics Code forbade the use of the word "zombie.")
15. Getting my monthly box of comics in the mail, reading them all in a flurry within a day, and then re-reading them at my leisure.
16. Mantis and the Swordsman.
17. The Winter Soldier. Unlike many, I never cared much about Bucky as a character, but as the Winter Soldier he's become far more interesting.
18. The new Moon Knight series.
19. Deadpool! Everybody loves Deadpool! (Everybody in my house, anyway.)
20. Cosmic Boy's old costume from the 70s. (If you click the link, he's front and center at the bottom.)
21. George Perez, the first comic artist whose art I actually noticed.
22. Trade paperbacks. They make it so much easier to catch up on books I've missed so far (JLA). In rare cases (Captain America) I buy both the floppies and the trade.
23. The Young Avengers. Do they still have a book?
24. Cat-Man of the Secret Six, and I'm not sure why.
25. Those rare, all-too-brief moments between major company-wide comic events.
26. Being able to share my comics with my kids.
27. The comic internet, particularly the community of comic bloggers.
28. Fred Hembeck.
29. Stan Lee.
30. Every damn Avengers book they've ever come out with.
31. Ms. Marvel back in the 70s. I still like her, but when she first appeared she was something special.
32. Spider-Woman back in the 70s. Even then a non-traditional superheroine.
33. The Huntress in all her incarnations; she was amazing to watch, and had several of the best costume designs I've seen.
34. Character-driven stories. Someone had a blog post not long ago addressing character vs. plot in comics. Preferably you get both, but I'll drop a book faster for plot with no character than I will for character with no plot.
35. The original Invaders series.
36. Hawkeye (Clint Barton), who could never maintain a series of his own but was nonetheless the heart of the old Avengers for many years.
37. My few-and-far-between visits to a real comic book shop.
38. The Irredeemable Ant-Man. Second on my list of books to read every month it appears.
39. The original Damage Control mini-series, and the concept of there being a company in the business of picking up the pieces after a superhero battle.
40. The Spirit. Which I can now include in a list of favorite mainstream comic stuff.
41. Greer Nelson as The Cat, and in her early Tigra days. (Haven't been a big fan in recent years, but back in the day she was pretty great.)
42. The Vision and the Scarlet Witch. No, I don't want them back as they were, but at the time they were the best couple in comics.
43. The roller skates on Iron Man's old armor.
44. The relationship between the Beast and Wonder Man in the old Avengers book.
45. Red kryptonite.
46. Plastic Man in the JLA.
47. Nick Fury.
48. The Fantasti-Car.
49. Green Lantern rings.
50. Dr. Doom. Best villain ever, period.
Tuesday, May 22, 2007
Women on covers done right.
The August Marvel solicits just came out, including one for Captain America 29. (Since 26 is due out next week, apparently with CW and FS over, Cap is back on a monthly schedule, yay!)
The cover features, among others, the always-awesome Sharon Carter. Sharon has always been portrayed well in Cap, but up until now you could wonder if that was because she's always been in the unisex SHIELD uniform, as in this cover for Cap 22. Here she's out of uniform, wearing a rather Emma-Peel-ish white unitard with shoulder cutouts and a dipping neckline (but, oddly, no cleavage to speak of, possibly because she's not sticking her chest out), and definitely ready to take a shot at whatever evildoer comes her way. Sexy, but not overtly sexual.
Actually, although Cap doesn't feature many female characters, when they're there they tend to be done well, as with Spitfire in the London section of the Red Menace storyline. Even the villainous, underage Sin, daughter of the Red Skull, who shows more skin than anyone else in the book, doesn't let it get in the way of business (see her appearance on the cover of Cap 28). To some extent she has been the sociopathic Bonnie to Crossbones' Clyde, but the hot always comes after the evil.
The cover features, among others, the always-awesome Sharon Carter. Sharon has always been portrayed well in Cap, but up until now you could wonder if that was because she's always been in the unisex SHIELD uniform, as in this cover for Cap 22. Here she's out of uniform, wearing a rather Emma-Peel-ish white unitard with shoulder cutouts and a dipping neckline (but, oddly, no cleavage to speak of, possibly because she's not sticking her chest out), and definitely ready to take a shot at whatever evildoer comes her way. Sexy, but not overtly sexual.
Actually, although Cap doesn't feature many female characters, when they're there they tend to be done well, as with Spitfire in the London section of the Red Menace storyline. Even the villainous, underage Sin, daughter of the Red Skull, who shows more skin than anyone else in the book, doesn't let it get in the way of business (see her appearance on the cover of Cap 28). To some extent she has been the sociopathic Bonnie to Crossbones' Clyde, but the hot always comes after the evil.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Action figures once again
The husband was out of town this weekend, and since he was in the area he decided to make a brief stop at Motor City Comic Con. Said I, "But you don't even like comics!" Which isn't true, he likes them well enough and will sometimes read them since they are in the house, but he wouldn't go out of his way to find them. But he was there and he had some spare time, so he went for a few hours. Mostly, I guess, in the merchant room or whatever they call it (see, I've never been to a comic convention). And he returned home bearing gifts!
The Sentry, with long hair and beard!
I've discussed the non-alternate version of this one before. This one is pretty much the same thing apart from the head. The long hair and beard give him a sort of "Jesus joins the WWF" vibe, but overall very much cooler than the other one.
Angel, in blue
Another alternate to one we already have, but since the red-clad Angel broke at the hip early on, this one is really more in the area of a replacement. (Actually a number of the Marvel Legends have broken in some way. I guess that happens when they are actually played with.) The paint job isn't as good here, with the blue showing through the white bits quite a bit, and the wings have a "dirtier" look to them. Mainly I am hoping that he is sturdier than his counterpart.
Batwoman
This is one sharp-looking figure. The hair is more of a brownish auburn than a real red, but apart from that, definitely a nice design. But everyone has seen it online, so you all know that it looks good.
As for playability, it doesn't have a lot, which is common for DC Direct figures, they're made mostly for display and it shows. (It would be nice if DC's line of actual toy action figures came out with anything like the alacrity that these ones do.)
The cape is attached well. The belt slides around a lot but that's just irritating, not a real playability issue. The hair, which probably should be longer from a design point of view, is just short enough to allow free head movement, and the head turns well and cocks just a bit.
The articulation, as expected, is minimal, main joints only (hips, shoulders, elbows and knees). The legs are rather stiff, she can't sit (and she does not stand well at all so this is a problem), and can't do any backward or sideways kicks. The arms do swing out at the shoulders as well as turn. She does not turn at the waist, and is posed with the right hip permanently cocked to the side. So, yes, I knew as soon as I'd seen pictures that she was really just a stand-there-and-look-awesome figure. And I still wanted her.
Which is a little odd considering that she's an entirely new character with relatively little character development thus far. She has potential, but very little of it has been realized at this point.
I sure hope she has a continuing storyline.
The Sentry, with long hair and beard!
I've discussed the non-alternate version of this one before. This one is pretty much the same thing apart from the head. The long hair and beard give him a sort of "Jesus joins the WWF" vibe, but overall very much cooler than the other one.
Angel, in blue
Another alternate to one we already have, but since the red-clad Angel broke at the hip early on, this one is really more in the area of a replacement. (Actually a number of the Marvel Legends have broken in some way. I guess that happens when they are actually played with.) The paint job isn't as good here, with the blue showing through the white bits quite a bit, and the wings have a "dirtier" look to them. Mainly I am hoping that he is sturdier than his counterpart.
Batwoman
This is one sharp-looking figure. The hair is more of a brownish auburn than a real red, but apart from that, definitely a nice design. But everyone has seen it online, so you all know that it looks good.
As for playability, it doesn't have a lot, which is common for DC Direct figures, they're made mostly for display and it shows. (It would be nice if DC's line of actual toy action figures came out with anything like the alacrity that these ones do.)
The cape is attached well. The belt slides around a lot but that's just irritating, not a real playability issue. The hair, which probably should be longer from a design point of view, is just short enough to allow free head movement, and the head turns well and cocks just a bit.
The articulation, as expected, is minimal, main joints only (hips, shoulders, elbows and knees). The legs are rather stiff, she can't sit (and she does not stand well at all so this is a problem), and can't do any backward or sideways kicks. The arms do swing out at the shoulders as well as turn. She does not turn at the waist, and is posed with the right hip permanently cocked to the side. So, yes, I knew as soon as I'd seen pictures that she was really just a stand-there-and-look-awesome figure. And I still wanted her.
Which is a little odd considering that she's an entirely new character with relatively little character development thus far. She has potential, but very little of it has been realized at this point.
I sure hope she has a continuing storyline.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Starfox and Spider-Woman
So why is it that Starfox's sex-based powers were apparently skeevy to the point that they had to be eliminated, while Spider-Woman's similar power--her pheromones--are not?
For most of Starfox's history, his abilities were fully under his control and used only for good. Yeah, they may have weirded out his colleagues (I recall a scene in an old Avengers book where he assured the Wasp that he would never use his abilities on his friends "unless they ask" :)) but there was never any question of his ethics, until recent issues of She-Hulk made it so. Granted that it turned out that the lack of control was not his fault, but he was still so horrified at what had happened that he was willing to lose those abilities altogether.
Spider-Woman, on the other hand, has never had full control of her pheromone abilities. I vaguely recall that in her first long-ago series the pheromones made most men drawn to her and most women dislike her (I hope they've at least eliminated that second bit). She wore some sort of cologne to cover them up, didn't she? Meaning that having that ability and not having control over it was inconvenient. Yet in New Avengers, when the rest of the team found out about those abilities (after she had used them to distract a villain to the point he could be beaten) they were surprised and relieved because they had all found themselves inexplicably attracted to her! You know, maybe it's just me, but that's the sort of thing that I'd find inconvenient if I were trying to work with people. And it's not as if she's made any effort to amend the situation--up until that point she hadn't even let on to the others that she might be inadvertently affecting their judgment, and as far as I know she has made no effort to fix the problem.
I suppose there's a question as to which would be better. If she suppresses the pheromones, it's better for the group (it's got to be distracting for the others, having that going on) but then she doesn't have that ability to use against villains. On the other hand, it's not as if she was hired for those abilities--no one knew she had them until well into the run of New Avengers. She has plenty more going for her. My own thought would be that she ought to do something about it until such time as she actually has the ability under control. If it's unacceptable for Starfox to go around randomly turning people on, it is for Spider-Woman as well. Isn't it?
For most of Starfox's history, his abilities were fully under his control and used only for good. Yeah, they may have weirded out his colleagues (I recall a scene in an old Avengers book where he assured the Wasp that he would never use his abilities on his friends "unless they ask" :)) but there was never any question of his ethics, until recent issues of She-Hulk made it so. Granted that it turned out that the lack of control was not his fault, but he was still so horrified at what had happened that he was willing to lose those abilities altogether.
Spider-Woman, on the other hand, has never had full control of her pheromone abilities. I vaguely recall that in her first long-ago series the pheromones made most men drawn to her and most women dislike her (I hope they've at least eliminated that second bit). She wore some sort of cologne to cover them up, didn't she? Meaning that having that ability and not having control over it was inconvenient. Yet in New Avengers, when the rest of the team found out about those abilities (after she had used them to distract a villain to the point he could be beaten) they were surprised and relieved because they had all found themselves inexplicably attracted to her! You know, maybe it's just me, but that's the sort of thing that I'd find inconvenient if I were trying to work with people. And it's not as if she's made any effort to amend the situation--up until that point she hadn't even let on to the others that she might be inadvertently affecting their judgment, and as far as I know she has made no effort to fix the problem.
I suppose there's a question as to which would be better. If she suppresses the pheromones, it's better for the group (it's got to be distracting for the others, having that going on) but then she doesn't have that ability to use against villains. On the other hand, it's not as if she was hired for those abilities--no one knew she had them until well into the run of New Avengers. She has plenty more going for her. My own thought would be that she ought to do something about it until such time as she actually has the ability under control. If it's unacceptable for Starfox to go around randomly turning people on, it is for Spider-Woman as well. Isn't it?
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
Gender-identified genres
In which Brainfreeze actually gets semi-feminist/political. (Don't worry, it won't happen often--I love my all-about-the-comics space far too much!)
I grew up reading comics. Superhero comics. I have no idea whether other kids (of either gender) in my class read them, I didn't bring them to school so we wouldn't have talked about them. I certainly don't remember ever concealing my enjoyment of them. It really never would have occurred to me that comics were "boy toys." I never felt excluded from the readership. I still don't. I read them, I enjoy them, and more often than not I'm happy with my purchases.
My daughters read comics as well, and I don't think the idea of comics as a male-identified genre has ever occurred to them, either. (Not that anyone else in their classes is likely to be a fan.)
Obviously I don't personally consider comic books to be a gender-identified genre so much as something of a fringe genre. I've always been a fairly fringe person so that's fine with me. :)
But I'll admit that my own perceptions here may be flawed, since I've never felt that connected to mainstream femininity. So for the sake of argument...
I've never been a reader of romance novels so I can't say for sure that there's anything specifically female-oriented about them in terms of subject matter, writing style, or whatever, but there is certainly a strong public perception that romance novels (like soap operas) are for women, and there's apparently a strong identification with women within the industry. But that's not a content issue, and it's only partly an issue of promotion.
In fact, I'd guess that one reason there may not be many men reading romance novels has to do with the stigma attached to it--that a real man wouldn't be interested in them.
It's not just the romance novels--there tends to be a similar stigma attached to any field or activity that's commonly associated with women. There are still men who won't wash the dishes because, to them, it's women's work.
In fact, there is always less of a problem with women taking on jobs, hobbies, tasks traditionally associated with men than there is the other way around. Think of women as doctors, think of men as nurses. Think of clothing--women's clothing often includes items that were traditionally worn by men, but how often does it go the other way? Think of names--many men's names have been used by women with little fanfare, but it doesn't happen the other way around (remember "A Boy Named Sue"?).
Why is that, do you think? Well, what is male tends to be taken as the norm, the standard. (Thus the old terms "lady lawyer" or "male nurse"--because at one time these things were unexpected.) What is female is outside the norm, it's something different. So when a woman reads Sports Illustrated or Popular Mechanics, that might be considered unusual but it's not shameful, because it's at worst a lateral move, a move that takes her into the society standard. When a man reads Cosmopolitan or Woman's Day, that's a move outside of the standard. Calling a man a woman or a girl is an insult; calling a woman a man--well, it just seems strange, there isn't a similar implication at all.
So that romance novels and superhero comic books, even if gender-identified genres, wouldn't really occupy the same gender-specific space because, in general, women would be far more comfortable reading Marvel or DC comics than men would be reading Harlequin romances.
I suppose that could account for some of us feeling that superhero comics are a male-identified genre and others of us feeling that they're not--that in some ways it can be hard to tell the difference. :)
I grew up reading comics. Superhero comics. I have no idea whether other kids (of either gender) in my class read them, I didn't bring them to school so we wouldn't have talked about them. I certainly don't remember ever concealing my enjoyment of them. It really never would have occurred to me that comics were "boy toys." I never felt excluded from the readership. I still don't. I read them, I enjoy them, and more often than not I'm happy with my purchases.
My daughters read comics as well, and I don't think the idea of comics as a male-identified genre has ever occurred to them, either. (Not that anyone else in their classes is likely to be a fan.)
Obviously I don't personally consider comic books to be a gender-identified genre so much as something of a fringe genre. I've always been a fairly fringe person so that's fine with me. :)
But I'll admit that my own perceptions here may be flawed, since I've never felt that connected to mainstream femininity. So for the sake of argument...
I've never been a reader of romance novels so I can't say for sure that there's anything specifically female-oriented about them in terms of subject matter, writing style, or whatever, but there is certainly a strong public perception that romance novels (like soap operas) are for women, and there's apparently a strong identification with women within the industry. But that's not a content issue, and it's only partly an issue of promotion.
In fact, I'd guess that one reason there may not be many men reading romance novels has to do with the stigma attached to it--that a real man wouldn't be interested in them.
It's not just the romance novels--there tends to be a similar stigma attached to any field or activity that's commonly associated with women. There are still men who won't wash the dishes because, to them, it's women's work.
In fact, there is always less of a problem with women taking on jobs, hobbies, tasks traditionally associated with men than there is the other way around. Think of women as doctors, think of men as nurses. Think of clothing--women's clothing often includes items that were traditionally worn by men, but how often does it go the other way? Think of names--many men's names have been used by women with little fanfare, but it doesn't happen the other way around (remember "A Boy Named Sue"?).
Why is that, do you think? Well, what is male tends to be taken as the norm, the standard. (Thus the old terms "lady lawyer" or "male nurse"--because at one time these things were unexpected.) What is female is outside the norm, it's something different. So when a woman reads Sports Illustrated or Popular Mechanics, that might be considered unusual but it's not shameful, because it's at worst a lateral move, a move that takes her into the society standard. When a man reads Cosmopolitan or Woman's Day, that's a move outside of the standard. Calling a man a woman or a girl is an insult; calling a woman a man--well, it just seems strange, there isn't a similar implication at all.
So that romance novels and superhero comic books, even if gender-identified genres, wouldn't really occupy the same gender-specific space because, in general, women would be far more comfortable reading Marvel or DC comics than men would be reading Harlequin romances.
I suppose that could account for some of us feeling that superhero comics are a male-identified genre and others of us feeling that they're not--that in some ways it can be hard to tell the difference. :)
By the way, "gender-identified genre"? Excellent tongue-twister. Five times fast, try it!
"True Love" in comics
I don't believe in True Love. Not the kind people mean when they say it in that way, the way where you can hear the capital letters. Not the soulmate kind of thing, the one-and-only kind of thing, the never-love-this-way-again kind of thing, the just-one-chance-at-happiness-ever kind of thing.
I do believe in true love. Lower-case true love. Real life true love.
I'm a married woman. A happily married woman I love my husband to a ridiculous degree, and with every year things get better and better. I can't imagine being with anyone else.
But I don't believe that he's the only man I could have been happy with (although surely it would have been a different kind of happy in a different kind of relationship).
"Okay, Brainfreeze, good for you, we're happy for you, but what does this have to do with comics?" I hear you say.
Comics like to go for the True Love.
Not always, but often. And often at the expense of good stories. Why, for example, is Black Canary supposedly going back to Green Arrow? (Nothing against Green Arrow, but she's been a far better character since they've been apart. And has had much better boyfriends besides.) It's got to be because that's who she's been historically paired with, regardless of whether the pairing makes sense or is even interesting at this point.
Comics also like to go for the First Love, as in equating the First Love with the True Love.
Even retroactively, as in the case of Robin/Nightwing and Batgirl and Starfire. It irks me no end the way the relationship between Dick and Kory--one of the sweeter and more unique hero relationships--has been downgraded in order to make room for Barbara Gordon as First Love/True Love.
Peter Parker will never love Mary Jane the way he loved Gwen Stacey, because Gwen was the First Love and therefore the True Love.
(I'm not going entirely from House of M here. Actually I'm not sure that the point there was the one many people seemed to see--that because in his ideal world he was with Gwen, he had to have loved her more. More likely, I think, that he simply wouldn't have had the chance to be with MJ because he never had to part from Gwen, no statement on the comparative quality of his feeling for the two women.)
Because, you know, it's not possible that Peter could be just as happy with MJ, albeit in different ways, as he could have been if things had gone differently with Gwen. The difference can't be qualitative--it has to be quantitative as well. One has to be better.
Why is that? Are there actually people who think that way in real life? Who don't take each relationship on its own merits without thinking about how it rates in comparison to other relationships? Because, you know, that would suck, to exist that way.
Ahem.
I do believe in true love. Lower-case true love. Real life true love.
I'm a married woman. A happily married woman I love my husband to a ridiculous degree, and with every year things get better and better. I can't imagine being with anyone else.
But I don't believe that he's the only man I could have been happy with (although surely it would have been a different kind of happy in a different kind of relationship).
"Okay, Brainfreeze, good for you, we're happy for you, but what does this have to do with comics?" I hear you say.
Comics like to go for the True Love.
Not always, but often. And often at the expense of good stories. Why, for example, is Black Canary supposedly going back to Green Arrow? (Nothing against Green Arrow, but she's been a far better character since they've been apart. And has had much better boyfriends besides.) It's got to be because that's who she's been historically paired with, regardless of whether the pairing makes sense or is even interesting at this point.
Comics also like to go for the First Love, as in equating the First Love with the True Love.
Even retroactively, as in the case of Robin/Nightwing and Batgirl and Starfire. It irks me no end the way the relationship between Dick and Kory--one of the sweeter and more unique hero relationships--has been downgraded in order to make room for Barbara Gordon as First Love/True Love.
Peter Parker will never love Mary Jane the way he loved Gwen Stacey, because Gwen was the First Love and therefore the True Love.
(I'm not going entirely from House of M here. Actually I'm not sure that the point there was the one many people seemed to see--that because in his ideal world he was with Gwen, he had to have loved her more. More likely, I think, that he simply wouldn't have had the chance to be with MJ because he never had to part from Gwen, no statement on the comparative quality of his feeling for the two women.)
Because, you know, it's not possible that Peter could be just as happy with MJ, albeit in different ways, as he could have been if things had gone differently with Gwen. The difference can't be qualitative--it has to be quantitative as well. One has to be better.
Why is that? Are there actually people who think that way in real life? Who don't take each relationship on its own merits without thinking about how it rates in comparison to other relationships? Because, you know, that would suck, to exist that way.
Ahem.
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
The April '07 comics, Part 2 [Spoilers]
Fallen Son: Wolverine and Fallen Son: Avengers
I'm not planning to get all of this set--actually, I think I'm getting all but one (the Spiderman issue). My first thought was that, wow, for the concept they're using this is quite a bit less contrived than I expected it to be! So that's a plus.
The Wolverine issue (denial) had better story. Well, it had story. I'm not a big Wolverine fan and I've never followed Daredevil at all, and since I'd already seen the entire Winter Soldier bit in the previews there wasn't much for me here in terms of characters I'm interested in. But overall a decent book.
The Avengers issue (anger) had a lot less story, but I don't mind a character-driven comic once in a while, and this one wasn't bad. I've never followed Spider-Man either, but I do like most of the other New Avengers (and many of the Mighties). It was all right. Some good scenes, particularly in the New Avengers section. The Mighty Avengers parts were less compelling.
So, my thoughts on this series thus far? Readable, but not exciting. Annoying that this is why Captain America missed a month or two. Nothing I'm thrilled to have, but I'm not upset at having spent the money. I probably wouldn't recommend it to anyone who isn't a completist, honestly.
We'll see how the rest goes next month.
Marvel heroes who have never interested me: the aforementioned Spider-Man and Daredevil. The Hulk. Thor. The Silver Surfer, and pretty much anyone cosmic (apart from Captain Marvel on occasion). I will say that not caring for Spider-Man at any point, and having burnt out on the X-Men back in the 90s, I spend a lot less on comics than I could!
I'm not planning to get all of this set--actually, I think I'm getting all but one (the Spiderman issue). My first thought was that, wow, for the concept they're using this is quite a bit less contrived than I expected it to be! So that's a plus.
The Wolverine issue (denial) had better story. Well, it had story. I'm not a big Wolverine fan and I've never followed Daredevil at all, and since I'd already seen the entire Winter Soldier bit in the previews there wasn't much for me here in terms of characters I'm interested in. But overall a decent book.
The Avengers issue (anger) had a lot less story, but I don't mind a character-driven comic once in a while, and this one wasn't bad. I've never followed Spider-Man either, but I do like most of the other New Avengers (and many of the Mighties). It was all right. Some good scenes, particularly in the New Avengers section. The Mighty Avengers parts were less compelling.
So, my thoughts on this series thus far? Readable, but not exciting. Annoying that this is why Captain America missed a month or two. Nothing I'm thrilled to have, but I'm not upset at having spent the money. I probably wouldn't recommend it to anyone who isn't a completist, honestly.
We'll see how the rest goes next month.
Marvel heroes who have never interested me: the aforementioned Spider-Man and Daredevil. The Hulk. Thor. The Silver Surfer, and pretty much anyone cosmic (apart from Captain Marvel on occasion). I will say that not caring for Spider-Man at any point, and having burnt out on the X-Men back in the 90s, I spend a lot less on comics than I could!
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Kid stuff
We've recently installed the Sims on the girls' computer. The twelve-year-old's greatest joy is surfing the web for "custom content," and she's come across a vast number of superhero Sims. So she and the eight-year-old have both been populating their villages with the X-Men. I'm not sure how well the actual play works out, but they're having fun with it.
Thursday, May 03, 2007
Marvel fan days of my youth
So I was reading a few things on Bloglines today, and came across a link in Dick Hates Your Blog to this piece on politics in Marvel comics in the 8os, something I know pretty much nothing about. (I'm not writing about it today, either.)
Now, I had heard the name Vince Colletta before, on the splash page of god-only-knows-how-many comics I read as a kid and teenager, often with a bouncy adjective attached (ala "Jumpin' Jack Kirby" and "Stompin' Stan Lee").
That's another thing that made Marvel stand out to me when I was a kid--the personality. I don't remember ever noticing any credits on DC books I read, although I know they were there. But they weren't as dynamic as the ones on my Marvel books. And even after the nicknames disappeared from the credits, they were still all over the Marvel Bullpen Bulletin,* a page promoting upcoming projects, discussing editorial and creative-team changes in the company--as a twelve-year-old I certainly didn't read this closely but I did usually glance at it. I remember reading Stan's Soapbox, noting the way creators and their projects were referred to so effusively and so personally.
It all seemed so joyful, as if these people all went to work and had fun! And why not?--to a twelve-year-old, a job consisting of telling stories and drawing pictures would have been the ultimate good time. These must be the happiest people on the planet!
Yeah, I'm a grownup now. And it's been thirty years or thereabouts since I enjoyed that sort of blindness to the fact that any job is, well, a job. And I know that all the things I'm talking about--Stan's Soapbox, the goofy credits, etc.--were, really, business, promotion of an image. But I still have fond memories of being a young girl, looking forward to each month's new Fantastic Four, and feeling like the folks who made it had at least as much fun putting the book together as I did reading it.
* Of course I had to go out to the porch and grab an old Silver Age book out of the longbox. The one I took is from 1974, and one of the announcements on the Bullpen Bulletin Page is about the Invaders title; it'll give you an idea of the tone taken in these things:
Yeah, back in the day, long before the internet and the pages and pages of creator interviews and the 6 pages of previews of upcoming titles, this is what we had to whet our appetite for new books. Doesn't seem like much compared to, say, Newsarama, does it? :)
Now, I had heard the name Vince Colletta before, on the splash page of god-only-knows-how-many comics I read as a kid and teenager, often with a bouncy adjective attached (ala "Jumpin' Jack Kirby" and "Stompin' Stan Lee").
That's another thing that made Marvel stand out to me when I was a kid--the personality. I don't remember ever noticing any credits on DC books I read, although I know they were there. But they weren't as dynamic as the ones on my Marvel books. And even after the nicknames disappeared from the credits, they were still all over the Marvel Bullpen Bulletin,* a page promoting upcoming projects, discussing editorial and creative-team changes in the company--as a twelve-year-old I certainly didn't read this closely but I did usually glance at it. I remember reading Stan's Soapbox, noting the way creators and their projects were referred to so effusively and so personally.
It all seemed so joyful, as if these people all went to work and had fun! And why not?--to a twelve-year-old, a job consisting of telling stories and drawing pictures would have been the ultimate good time. These must be the happiest people on the planet!
Yeah, I'm a grownup now. And it's been thirty years or thereabouts since I enjoyed that sort of blindness to the fact that any job is, well, a job. And I know that all the things I'm talking about--Stan's Soapbox, the goofy credits, etc.--were, really, business, promotion of an image. But I still have fond memories of being a young girl, looking forward to each month's new Fantastic Four, and feeling like the folks who made it had at least as much fun putting the book together as I did reading it.
* Of course I had to go out to the porch and grab an old Silver Age book out of the longbox. The one I took is from 1974, and one of the announcements on the Bullpen Bulletin Page is about the Invaders title; it'll give you an idea of the tone taken in these things:
ITEM: Let's roll out the red carpet for Free-wheelin' FRANK ROBBINS, Marvel's newest editor and bon vivant! As many of you know, Frank's the artist and writer of the newspaper comic strip "Johnny Hazard," and is considered by his peers to be one of the finest craftsmen in the business. Now, after cutting his incisors on a Morbius tale or two in the pages of ADVENTURES INTO FEAR, Frank has stepped in to give our pal SAL BUSCEMA a well-earned rest from the pages of CAPTAIN AMERICA--and to team up with Roy the Boy [Thomas] on a brand new 50 cent title due to debut early in '75. Its title? THE INVADERS! (Who's going to be in this newest, most exciting super-group? We'll leave you guessing for a month or so, pilgrim. Suffice it to say that we think the lineup of this liltin' legion is going to catch nearly everybody off guard, and that Free-wheelin' Frank will definitely have his hands full!)
Yeah, back in the day, long before the internet and the pages and pages of creator interviews and the 6 pages of previews of upcoming titles, this is what we had to whet our appetite for new books. Doesn't seem like much compared to, say, Newsarama, does it? :)
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
The April '07 comics, Part 1 [Spoilers]
Justice Society of America #5, Mighty Avengers #2, She-Hulk #17
Justice Society of America #5
Decent despite being a crossover, although my usual complaint about crossovers--less face time with the characters you buy the book for in the first place--still holds to some degree.
But the truly awesome thing here is the return of the real Legion of Superheroes! Hyperbole aside, and no offense to fans of the current version of the LSH, but this is the version of the Legion that has that nostalgia equity for me. I grew up reading them. I miss them. None of the subsequent groups have ever gotten that sort of hold on me. In any case, I'm sure that a book featuring the older Legion is too much to hope for, but it's just nice seeing their return to some sort of continuity.
Mighty Avengers #2
Okay, the thought balloons. You know, I don't think I ever noticed that comics had stopped using them until I read about it on the internet. And I probably wouldn't have noticed their presence in Mighty Avengers if someone hadn't mentioned that. So obviously the lack or presence of thoughts balloons isn't something that has much effect on my enjoyment of the medium.
The story is all right. The art is pretty. I'm not certain yet if I like the portrayal of the Wasp, particularly her relationship with Hank at this point (refusing his calls seems pretty unlike her, unless he's done something recently that I'm not aware of). But then I was reading Avengers back when The Slap happened and after, and I thought I remembered there being exonerating circumstances (probably several conflicting versions over the years). And I don't find it unbelievable that Jan would vacillate some regarding her feelings for Hank, but I don't like the backsliding.
Also, not enough Mole Man, but what's there seems to be in character.
She-Hulk #17
I occasionally find the art distracting on this title--I'm not a big fan of the cartoony look, but I like it well enough as long as everyone is in proportion. Sometimes that isn't the case here. But the faces are expressive, and I kind of liked the look Tony was sporting in this book--reminded me of old 70s playboy Tony!
The story, OTOH, is almost always good. I'm even interested in the subplot involving Mallory Book trying to regain her criminal client base! (And, although it's surely still shallow, at least this development explains her post-Starfox reaction to Andy as more than what it seemed to be--the relationship affected her career, and that's her life. Mallory may not be a nice person, but I'm sure that the "OMG!!" factor alone would have passed for her eventually; however, the ridicule she perceives and its effect on her wallet has not.
I liked the interchange between Jen and Tony after their "debriefing," and wish they hadn't been interrupted because now I want to know what Tony thinks about the double standard. (My guess is that since it works in his favor, he may not have given it a lot of thought.)
Justice Society of America #5
Decent despite being a crossover, although my usual complaint about crossovers--less face time with the characters you buy the book for in the first place--still holds to some degree.
But the truly awesome thing here is the return of the real Legion of Superheroes! Hyperbole aside, and no offense to fans of the current version of the LSH, but this is the version of the Legion that has that nostalgia equity for me. I grew up reading them. I miss them. None of the subsequent groups have ever gotten that sort of hold on me. In any case, I'm sure that a book featuring the older Legion is too much to hope for, but it's just nice seeing their return to some sort of continuity.
Mighty Avengers #2
Okay, the thought balloons. You know, I don't think I ever noticed that comics had stopped using them until I read about it on the internet. And I probably wouldn't have noticed their presence in Mighty Avengers if someone hadn't mentioned that. So obviously the lack or presence of thoughts balloons isn't something that has much effect on my enjoyment of the medium.
The story is all right. The art is pretty. I'm not certain yet if I like the portrayal of the Wasp, particularly her relationship with Hank at this point (refusing his calls seems pretty unlike her, unless he's done something recently that I'm not aware of). But then I was reading Avengers back when The Slap happened and after, and I thought I remembered there being exonerating circumstances (probably several conflicting versions over the years). And I don't find it unbelievable that Jan would vacillate some regarding her feelings for Hank, but I don't like the backsliding.
Also, not enough Mole Man, but what's there seems to be in character.
She-Hulk #17
I occasionally find the art distracting on this title--I'm not a big fan of the cartoony look, but I like it well enough as long as everyone is in proportion. Sometimes that isn't the case here. But the faces are expressive, and I kind of liked the look Tony was sporting in this book--reminded me of old 70s playboy Tony!
The story, OTOH, is almost always good. I'm even interested in the subplot involving Mallory Book trying to regain her criminal client base! (And, although it's surely still shallow, at least this development explains her post-Starfox reaction to Andy as more than what it seemed to be--the relationship affected her career, and that's her life. Mallory may not be a nice person, but I'm sure that the "OMG!!" factor alone would have passed for her eventually; however, the ridicule she perceives and its effect on her wallet has not.
I liked the interchange between Jen and Tony after their "debriefing," and wish they hadn't been interrupted because now I want to know what Tony thinks about the double standard. (My guess is that since it works in his favor, he may not have given it a lot of thought.)
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